Somewhat off the Way
by netgirly2k
Summary: In which there's a bodyswap. But it's okay, Merlin knows what he did wrong this time.


Arthur Pendragon was sitting in his chambers staring moodily into the fire with his sword across his knees, the only way he could possibly appear more princely was if a damsel in distress suddenly appeared in the picture.

Just then the door was thrown open, "Arthur, you've got to help me!"

"Morgana, what's happened?" Lady Morgana's clothes and hair were in disarray, she looked terrible. Arthur hefted his sword and looked for something to kill.

"I'm not Morgana."

"Morgana, whatever silly game you are playing, I'm the prince of Camelot and I haven't the time for it."

Morgana took a step into the room, tripped over the train of her dress and landed in an undignified sprawl next to the fireplace. She glared at Arthur, by Morgana's usual standards it really wasn't that menacing. "Well, are you going to help me up or aren't you? You know if you were a proper price you'd have caught me, prat..."

Arthur looked down at where the woman who claimed she wasn't Morgana was struggling with her skirts in a less than ladylike fashion.

"_Merlin!?"_

* * *

Gwen was minding her own business when a pair of hands reached out of a linen closet and pulled her inside.

"Merlin?" she said, recognising her abductor. "Why are you hiding in a linen closet?"

"I'm not," Merlin replied miserably.

"Not hiding?"

"Not Merlin. I'm Morgana. There's been a bit of an accident."

"Okay."

"Okay? That's all you've got to say?"

"Well, I thought you, I mean obviously it makes perfect sense now that I know it was Merlin, but I did think that you were acting a little oddly when I was dressing you this morning."

"Strange how?" Morgana narrowed Merlin's eyes, it made him look short-sighted.

"Well, your eyes were shut and you were whimpering the whole time."

* * *

Arthur paced his chambers, waving his sword with such enthusiasm that he beheaded a bouquet of flowers than Merlin had very thoughtfully left on the table. Okay, he'd very thoughtfully left them there because Gwen had told him to, but still.

"I'll kill him," Arthur threatened.

"Er, who?" asked Merlin, who was sitting in front of the fire massaging Morgana's ankle. How _did _she walk in those shoes?

"The sorcerer who did this to you and Morgana, of course."

"Okay, Arthur, there's something I've been meaning to tell you for a while, but before I do I want you to remember that you're a knight of Camelot and you cannot hit a woman. And even though Morgana is perfectly capable of defending herself against you, it's me who's in here."

* * *

"It still doesn't explain why you're hiding in a linen closet," said Gwen. "I mean I know Merlin's no Arthur or Lancelot, but I've always thought he was very, I mean not handsome, but handsome."

"That's not why I'm in here. I'm in here because, displeased though I am with Merlin I have no wish to see him executed." Morgana waved Merlin's hand lackadaisically at a stack of linen which shot up into the air, bounced off the ceiling and rained down on their heads. "Have I mentioned that Merlin is a very powerful sorcerer and this is. All. His. Fault."

* * *

"Let me see if I've got this straight," said Arthur, who had taken many blows to the head and sometimes needed things said aloud to be sure of following them. "You're a magician, and Morgana is a sorceress-"

"Seer," corrected Merlin, "we're working on the sorceress thing."

"With great success, obviously," said Arthur looking at Merlin, who was toying miserably with Morgana's hair. "And it never occurred to you that teaching the king's ward to use magic might have some unforeseen consequences?"

"Well, of course it did. But I thought it'd be Gaius shouting at me or Uther beheading both of us, something _normal._"

Just then there was a knock at the door and Gwen peeked round the door at them, "Excuse me, sire, I was looking for, er, Morgana."

"It's all right, Guinevere, said Arthur, "I know that's Merlin. I presume you have Morgana stashed in a cupboard somewhere?"

"Um, er, sire..."

"Oh, _please _tell me she's really hiding in a cupboard? Well, you'd better bring her here."

* * *

"What have you done to my hair?" exclaimed Morgana the first time she set eyes on Merlin.

"What have you done to my spine?"

"It's called posture, Merlin," Morgana replied.

"Morgana," Arthur interrupted, "we hear you've been hiding in cupboard."

"Yes, well, I'm in Merlin's body. I assumed if I saw you you'd ask me to do manservant things."

"Why," complained Arthur, "do you say 'manservant things' like it includes recreational buggery?"

"God, Arthur," Merlin's embarrassment turned most of Morgana's upper torso bright red, "there are woman he- Gwen's here!"

"I apologise, Guinevere. Now are we going to see Gaius or not?"

* * *

The four of them trooped along to Gaius's study, Merlin lifted Morgana's gown up to practically his knees so he didn't trip over it. Gwen fell back until she was walking alongside him.

"Merlin, about this morning."

"Nothing to explain, Morgana has nightmares. It's perfectly sensible that you'd climb into bed with her, and cuddle her, and, uh, nuzzle her neck."

"Merlin?"

"Yes?"

"Is it okay if we-?"

"Never speak of it again? Yes, please."

* * *

Gaius, once he'd eventually stopped laughing, told them that there was a perfectly simple spell to reverse what had happened, the only thing was that it required four participants.

Arthur, Gwen, Merlin and Morgana sat in a circle on the floor of Merlin's room while Merlin and Morgana cast the spell.

"Did it work?

Morgana was combing out the tangles Merlin had caused in her hair and Merlin was hugging his knees like he'd only just realised he _had _knees.

"I guess so."

"Idiot," Gwen reached over and punched Merlin in the shoulder just as Arthur said, "Come on, my lady," and made to help Morgana up by the elbow.

They both looked at each other in horror.

"Okay, said Merlin, "I really do know what I did wrong this time."


End file.
